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A confirmatory and exploratory analysis of the academic motivation of high school dropouts

A CONFIRMATORY AND EXPLORATORY ANALYSIS
OF THE ACADEMIC MOTIVATION OF HIGH SCHOOL DROPOUTS
by
Kathrine Moulton
A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC GRADUATE SCHOOL
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
(EDUCATION)
August 2011
Copyright 2011 Kathrine Moulton

Studies in the dropout literature describe what dropouts do and the circumstances that exist in their lives- they come from poor backgrounds, associate with deviant peers, engage in delinquent behavior, get poor grades, are retained in early grades, and so forth. At best, this work describes the symptoms of the process of dropping out, rather than actual causes (Rumberger, 1987). Few studies look at differences among dropouts or what happens to them after they leave school. Furthermore, the lack of motivational constructs in dropout research prevents an examination of the mechanisms involved in the pre- and post-dropout experience. In order to further understand how motivational factors are related to varying dropout outcomes, we need to examine the beliefs, values and social circumstances of students as they engage in different contexts and behaviors. ❧ This study applies a fundamental theory from the motivation literature to understand the impact of social and individual factors on the process of high school dropout and eventual completion of school. Findings indicate that Eccles and Wigfield’s (2002) Expectancy-Value theory generalizes to groups of graduates, dropouts who complete school and dropouts who do not in both similar and dissimilar ways. Graduates and Completers show remarkably strong similarities, while Non-Completers are found to be more externally driven by influences from parents and peers. Exploratory analyses reveal that the construct Expectancies is most predictive in classifying students into the three different completion groups. In general, this study begins to bridge a gap between the two substantial bodies of dropout and motivation research, and contributes to a new line of work examining just what happens to dropouts after they leave school.

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A CONFIRMATORY AND EXPLORATORY ANALYSIS
OF THE ACADEMIC MOTIVATION OF HIGH SCHOOL DROPOUTS
by
Kathrine Moulton
A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC GRADUATE SCHOOL
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
(EDUCATION)
August 2011
Copyright 2011 Kathrine Moulton